People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has just updated their animal-control statistics for 2005, and the numbers aren't pretty. According to the Virginia state veterinarian, PETA killed 1,946 cats, dogs, and other pets last year, in addition to 141 wild animals. In 2005 PETA managed a startling 90 percent kill rate (up from 86 percent the year before), adopting or transferring out only 215 animals. Added to PETA's earlier numbers, these new figures tell us that since July 1998 the group has killed over 14,400 cats, dogs, and other pets in Virginia.

Of course, Virginia isn't the only place where PETA is killing animals. In neighboring North Carolina, two PETA staffers have been charged with animal cruelty and obtaining property (the animals) by false pretenses. Adria Hinkle and Andrew Cook allegedly killed cats and dogs, stuffed their bodies into trash bags, and threw them into a dumpster.

We recently acquired additional photos of the crime scene, courtesy of the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald. Highlights include two new shots inside the "death van" itself, replete with cages, a copy of PETA's "Kind News," and pet food from IAMS (which PETA tells people to boycott). There are also several new photographs of PETA's animal victims. Before you click here, however, be warned -- some of these photos are not for the faint of heart.

2005 was also the year of Hurricane Katrina. PETA bragged in October about bringing 32 dogs back to Virginia from the disaster area. Judging by their percentages, we're guessing at least 29 of those canines have already met their demise.